Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-08-04
THE CIVIL SERVICE.
The National League OF Civil Service
Ref0rmers Meet In Convention at
Newport, Z. [.
George William Curtis Delivers p Lengthy
Address on this preseut Administration
RESOLUTIONS Adopted.

NEWPORT, K. I Aug. THE session
of the National Civil Service Reform /
Lesgue was opened with public meeting
at II 8. m. George William Curtis |
inside his annual address as follows: /
"The movement Of public sentiment may
be measured in many WAYS, especially in
TIE discussion Of the press 1ai in pub
lie speeches. Until the pension veto5s
and recent orders in regard to the return
ct rebel flags, partisan hostility to the
present administration expressed itself
chiefly II censure st its failure 10 conform
to an absolute standard Of reform, 8 con-
formity, however, which the censuriDg
party does not sfeCt to maintain where
ever it has control. This censure
and continuous discussion implies, and
implies Justly, general and profound
interest IN the subject. The division IN
the administration party, which is oby;-
Gus and unbeatable, springs from the
same question, and u another striking
Illustration Of the strong hold upon the
public mind. Moreover the possible sue
cess Of the Democratic party ii the cleo
ton of next year uldOubts div depends
! upon the denomination Of the President,
who is identified in tbs public mind with
the cause Of reform, eai it IS equally be-
| You'd question that if the President should
| formally rencunce reform principles
that he mas declared, and which
he honestly cherishes, and
should frankly announce th&t
| 3 general political reconstruction of the
civil service which, | regret to say, has
| taken place under his administration is
! due 10 q change of conviction uDOn his
| part ia favor Of the spoils system, he
would be abandoned by so large q body
! of citizens as to bring his reelection into
serious doubt" Mr. Curtis then re-
viewed at great length the progress of re-
form in the national service. lie said :
| ''TWO years ago, five months after the ia
auguration CT President Cleveland, | re-
minded you that in considering the con-
| dition and prospects OF reform we viewed
the question not as supporters or
opponents of his administration,
or Of any administration, but solely as
friends Of civil service reform. I saw
alsO that reform never had been the dis
tinCttiYe policy of either of the great ma
| tiOnGl parties. Now that two years have
passed aad more than half the term OF
I the administration expired, il is in the
same spirit aud with the same ccnvic-
ton that we are to look at the situstion.
1t is now possible l think, to Judge cor
rectly of the course of the administration
| il regard 10 reform, and ! regret to say
that during the two years and three
months Of its existence while the reform
law has been rejected within It's
limited range, while there ere unques-
tiOns5le and encouraging Signs
of progress, yet according to information
which is undoubtedly authentic, there MSS
been very significant change in the civil
service. Ia some Of the departments al
Washington this Is less apparent than
in others, but in survey OF the whole
service there has been almost as complete
| 3 change as was practicable, since an tn
tiraly new force Of totally inexperienced
officers would have prevented the regular
transaction Of public business" The
| speaker then gave many figures TO illus
trate the scope and significance of the
changes. lie said that if in the
P0stC flee Department the same
rate o: change continued during the
next two years, as during the past two
the entire body Of pOstmaster5 with very
few exceptions would be politically
changed, aud with the postmssters a.
employees dependent on them-suDstsn
italy the whole Of this vast and univer-
sally diffused service, whose smaller
officers are local headquarters of the ad-
mlnistratiOn party, and are often given tC
local editors whose newspapers thus sub
sidI2ed by the government would have
undergone complete pastissn reCOnstruC
ton. Practically, repeat, there viii bt
g very general partisan reconstruction Of
the national civil service, but
while such Il change Yves undOubt-
edly the wish and expectation
of 9 large and important part Of the sup
poryers OF the President at the polls,
do not believe that it was desired or an
tlclpated by the intelligent sentiment O.
the country. II the persistent pressure
/ of this demand had been resisted firmly
and il no change had been tolerated be
yond that equitable division between thu
parties, which although wholly indisputa
BILE upoa said princi )les Of reform, nigh
} have Deen accepted as permissible com
5 promise under many difficulties end cir
/ cumstances it would have have been 81
strongly entrenched in public appr0va
! tnst the end of the second tern
t Of the administration which mad es
z tabIished it, that 10 succeeding party O
e President would probably have ventare'
I to disturb it. But while we may believe
as l certainly do believe, that the Presi
e dent is the upright magistrate vino
I locking CT the vast and complicated
J., range OF his duties as chief executive Of
= great nation, has been unable to accom-
= plish IN this department CT his duty a
n that he would gladly have done. Will
d we may be wiling TO acquit him c
It inanity or indifference, we must be 8
Il just to ourselves as to him. 1t would b
It d grest wrong to the cause OF which tn
Q league is the authorized national repre-
= sentative if it did not p!ainl
c and emphatically declare that
does not regard the administration, how
ever, worthy of respect and confdenc
for many reasons as n any strict sens
of the words civil service reform ed
, ministration." Mr.. Curtis then criticise
y the action Of the President in the Bento
II and Stone cases in regard to the Circuls
l. of the President on the subject OF intel
g ference in politics by ali office holder
1t The speaker said, "of other officers b.
A sides Mr.. Benton and bir. Stone who
e disregard Of the circular h6ve taken pa
is IN ~. ,naninuIo+iOn NJ no tv nrirns